


Mitis Cervus

by AllZeeBuns



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Mention Of Suicide Attempt, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-25
Updated: 2015-07-25
Packaged: 2018-04-11 02:40:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4417865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllZeeBuns/pseuds/AllZeeBuns
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's difficult returning to photography after Kate's suicide attempt. The wounds of that day are still tender- and Max has had enough.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mitis Cervus

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers from episodes 1-2. This is a one shot set a few days after the second episode. It’s Max’s first photography lesson after Kate’s near-suicide.

Max feels sick as she nears the end of her usual walk to the photography room. It was only days ago during ‘The Language of Photography’ when Zach had interrupted their class and told them something was happening at the girls’ dorms. The memories of it haunt her. Particularly, the awful vision of seeing Kate jump. It was a terrifying, gruesome image and to everyone else- it didn’t happen. Max often thinks about the failure of her powers on that day. Having to move and fight past the excruciating pain. It was a glacial walk to the rooftop as time stood still. While the scene was frozen, she had time to glance around and truly appraise the situation. Brooke sheltered her eyes against the horror. Warren comforted Alyssa, while Dana and Juliet consoled each other. Then there were people like Victoria, Taylor and Hayden who filmed the whole thing on their fucking phones. It made her sick. A total lack of sympathy or empathy towards another human being: Cruelty incarnate. It didn’t make sense to her how people could be so thoughtless. She takes a deep breath and traces her fingers along a bracelet that Chloe had given her the night after the incident.

_“You can do this, Max. Just think, WWCD?”_

“There she is.” Someone whispers as she approaches the door. Her peers cheer and clap upon her entry. She considers plastering on a smile at the gesture, but she’s too upset to do that. It pisses her off to no end that some of the people congratulating her for saving Kate’s life are the same ones who helped push her to the brink. Instead she frowns and marches over to her seat. Her blue eyes are drawn to the empty chair where Kate should be.

 _“This is so messed up.”_ She rests a hand against her cheek and stares out the window.

“Max! It was amazing what you did the other day. Very nice.” A low voice commends her. The young woman looks up to see Hayden standing near her with a big smirk. She’s not in the mood for his jovial banter and doesn’t reply.

“What’s up with you? You don’t seem to be your usual selfie-queen self.” He laughs at his own joke.

Her blood boils under her skin. This whole situation is maddening and she can feel herself losing control.

“Hello, earth to Max!” The boy presses and waves his hand in front of her face.

“Fuck off, Hayden.” She snaps.

His eyes widen at her reply. The other students also observe their interaction with shock.

“Whoa! What the hell Max, what’s your problem?”

“You think I didn’t notice the people holding phones while Kate was on that roof?” Max directs her eyes to Victoria and Taylor who squirm uncomfortably under her gaze. Hayden’s face falls.

“Well, shit I didn’t think she was actually going to do it!”

“And that makes it okay?”

“Hey, it’s not a big deal, she didn’t-“

Max slams her fist down on the desk and points a finger at him. “No! It _is_ a big deal. You all had time to mess with your phones, but none of you took the time to step in and help her!”

“Max, that’s not fair. I didn’t put her on that roof.” The other teen crosses his arms protectively.

“Why do you think she was up there? It was that _stupid_ video! What makes you think another video of her in yet another messed-up situation is okay? She doesn’t need that shit.”

He doesn’t have anything to say to that.

“I like you Hayden, but that was truly fucked up. We’re all responsible for what happened, so forgive me if I’m not my regular perky-self today.”

“Wow, Max. Sorry. Point taken.” Hayden raises his hands in submission.

Her classmates are stunned by the confrontation. She turns her attention to Victoria as if to say, ‘You want to try me?’ to which the blonde frowns and averts her eyes.

Max sighs and covers her face with her hands. _“This sucks. I’m not usually like this, but… I’m just so angry.”_ Adrenaline courses through her veins, she’s fairly certain her hands are shaking.

“Max, can I have a word?” She lowers her fingers. It’s Mr. Jefferson. The teenager doesn’t know how much of that he had heard, but it seems to be enough. She follows him outside the classroom.

“Hey, are you okay? You don’t seem to be yourself. I know what happened with Kate was very difficult, but if you need anything don’t hesitate to talk to me, or we can arrange for a counsellor if you would prefer.” The teacher speaks to her in a soft, accommodating voice.

It’s sickening. Days earlier Kate had approached Mr. Jefferson for help and he had dismissed her. Not only that, but he had blamed her for the video. Max shakes her head in disbelief and makes a scoffing noise. The girl briskly returns to class before he can continue.

“Max.” He calls out behind her. She ignores him and keeps walking back to her table. The other students look on questioningly.

“Max, I wasn’t finished.”

“I was.” She spits back coolly and folds her arms.

Her classmates laugh and howl at the interaction.

“Look, I know you’re upset right now, but that doesn’t give you the right to blame everyone else for what happened.”

“Of course you would say that. She asked you to give her a break when she was struggling with the workload. It was obvious she was going through a rough time, but instead you blew her off! Then when I spoke to you about the video, how did you react? ‘Maybe she doth protest too much’? I didn’t realise victim-blaming was part of the curriculum.”

Some of the class look surprised and whisper about this revelation.

“That’s enough! If you're going to continue this, I will ask that you take it to the principal’s office.”

“Don’t bother. I’m done for the day.” She grabs her bag and storms out of the classroom, leaving a hiss of shocked and gossiping students in her wake.

Max’s breaths come heavily as she moves towards the carpark. Her fists are balled tightly, overcome with the desire to punch something.

 _“Fucking assholes.”_ She runs a wobbly hand through her hair and shakes her head. Nimble fingers slip into her pocket and grip her mobile. The girl clicks on a contact and begins dialling. The phone rings a couple of times before it's picked up.

“Chloe?” She asks quietly.

“Hey Max! What’s up?” The caller on the other end is chirpy and welcoming.

“Can you come pick me up? I can’t handle this place at the moment.”

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Chloe… Please.” The threat of tears constrict her throat, making her voice crack.

“Of course. I’ll be there soon.”

Once she hangs up, her face crumbles as she bursts into tears. She fidgets with Chloe’s gifted bracelet for comfort.

_

The girl feels a great sense of relief as she sees the familiar old truck pull up to the carpark. Chloe arrives quickly and Max is immensely thankful for that. She wanted to be away from it all. The dorm rooms, the staff, her classmates. Everything to do with Blackwell took her back to that dreadful day. Of course, Chloe was an ex-student and she had ties to the school, but it was different. Being with her, getting away from the campus offered her a sense of safety. She felt like she was home. They didn’t converse on the ride to Chloe’s house. Max appreciated that Chloe had sensed her mood and felt she should wait to address it. The time and place for it, was whenever they arrived at hers.

“So… What happened? Do you want to talk about it?” Chloe sits atop her bed with rolled up knees. Her best friend is seated next to her on the edge of the mattress.

“Since what happened, with Kate, it’s been…” Max puts her face in her hands. Chloe leans over and rubs her back.

“It’s been awful, Chloe. I can’t get it out of my head. To top that off, the people who helped push her to that are acting like they care. It’s bullshit.”

“I know it is.” Her companion comforts soothingly.

Max sighs. “No. That's a little unfair of me. I mean- of course they care. But, it shouldn’t have to take someone to be near-death just to get people to listen.”

Chloe nods wordlessly, waiting for her to carry on.

“I snapped today. I went off at Hayden and Mr. Jefferson.”

“Whoa! What happened?”

“Well… Hayden kept bugging me, so I ended up calling him out about filming Kate’s suicide attempt.”

“Shit dude. What an asshole!”

“I know! I was totally shocked. I never would’ve expected that from him. Then I told Mr. Jefferson off for not helping enough, and for him pretty much blaming Kate for the video.”

“Max- you are a bad. Ass. So, what happened then?”

“He told me he’d send me to the principal if I kept it up.”

“So…”

“I left.”

“Whoa! Go Max! I’m hella impressed.” She pats her back.

“I wouldn’t usually act like that, but I’d had it. I was so frustrated with it all. So… I tried to imagine what you would do.”

“Wow. So I… helped you today?” The punk responds in a questioning tone.

“Yeah. You gave me strength, when I needed it most.” She places her hand on Chloe’s.

“Crap... You’re going to make me blush.” The blue-haired girl looks away shyly.

“I like it when you blush.” Max jokes seductively and with a smirk.

“Well then, mission accomplished. I hope you’re happy with yourself!” Chloe smiles as her cheeks flush pink. The other teen grins and pulls her into a gentle kiss. She’s always consoled by the feeling of Chloe’s lips.

“Thanks for today, Chloe. I was feeling pretty low and you helped me. You took me away from that place.”

“Hey, it’s nothing. That’s what gal pals are for!” The rebel jests and massages Max’s shoulders.

The brunette laughs. “What else are they for?” She raises an eyebrow provocatively.

Chloe freezes, taking the hint. “Depends, but I can show you some of my ideas…”

“Oh.”

They both smile mischievously as they tumble back against the mattress.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there, thanks for reading! This was a quick one shot venting about some character's actions in regards to what happened to Kate in episode 2. When I first played the game, I really liked Hayden. He seemed like a nice guy. Then I noticed he was one of the students filming Kate’s suicide attempt and it completely changed the way I saw him! I still kind of like him, but man that was a shitty thing to do. Same for Mr. Jefferson and his accusatory attitude towards Kate, that annoyed me and grossed me out. I mean, he's her teacher! What a dick.
> 
> I also couldn’t help think about the effect that witnessing Kate’s suicide would have on Max. It’s so bizarre, she prevented it- but also didn’t. It’s that whole concept of Schrödinger's cat: Actions both existing and not-existing in the same moment.
> 
> 'Mitis Cervus' means gentle deer in Latin. The title was chosen to contrast with Max's typical behaviour and how she's expected to be. Recent events pushed her to act differently and step out of that role.


End file.
